FDRS victims: sue Mark Cella ASAP!!!! Anyone near San Gabriel, Cal?
I’ve spent all night going through the DBA filings from California, they finally arrived in the mail today, and scanning and posting at http://creditfactors.com/resistance/viewtopic.php?f=12&t=54
I’m wondering whether FDRS is about out of business, haven’t heard any of the radio commercials in about a week.
Apparently Mark Cella owned a corporation called CAREFREE DEBT, INC. and it had registered the dba “Federal Debt Relief System” until 2007.
On 5/22/07, there’s a FDRS dba filing for:
William Kelley (Trustee)
Frank W McGinnis
2915 W. Charleston Blvd. Las Vegas, NV 89147
However, it wasn’t published and is probably void. The reason I’m posting it here is because Kelly and McGinnis are or at least were involved.
On 5/26/07, Mark Cella filed another dba for FDRS:
Mark A Cella
5426 N Dubonnet Ave
San Gabriel, CA 91776
Good news: this appears to be a home address, at least it’s not a private mail service.
Bad news: it’s not a million dollar house:
http://lalife.com/address/5426_Dubonnet_Ave_San_Gabriel_CA_91776
I looked up the assessor data, but the owner’s name isn’t online.
It’s very odd that the houses in the neighborhood sell for about $400k, but it’s assessed at less than $80k, yet shows a last recording date of 2001. So maybe it was a family transfer, not a sale. And despite the low taxes, it was delinquent in 2006 and the 12/07 payment was late too.
Could one of the readers with access to public record housing data check to see who owns it and how much is owed on it?
And maybe someone in the area could do a drive-by, take a current pic, check for a for sale sign, etc.
It appears that there is NO dba for “Federal Debt Relief System”, I found only Mark Cella’s “FDRS” dba filing.
The bad news: It may be hard to serve him, unlike a corporation with a registered agent.
The FDRS.org site is registered in Casper, Wyoming.
Cella is either an idiot or very clever, but he definitely knows how create confusion. He knew from day one that this was a scam and that he’d get shut down once people figured out he does NOTHING for them and does NOT eliminate debts.
According to the BBB, the business address:
113 W MAIN ST #228
ALHAMBRA, CA 91801
Could somebody swing by there to see if they cleared out yet?
I can’t believe how much time I’ve spent on this. The frustration, first with the morons at FDRS, then with people who fell for the scam and are beyond help.
I really hope that people will sue quickly. And at least initially I’d try for small claims because of the small filing fee and often you can serve by mail.
I got fed up with these types of Southern California scammers quickly when I sued a bunch of scummy mortgage junk faxers. I got lucky and settled with a few for a couple thousand literally just a few months before they went bankrupt. But most were deadbeats, individuals like Mark Cella. Professional criminals. Keith Hyatt comes to mind.
So, it’s up to you to gather some info, hopefully someone will contact me with results of a drive-by or records search.
If you’re in Arizona, sue in small claims (justice court) for your refund and damages and try to serve by certified mail with restricted delivery and let me know how that goes.
If Cella OWNS the house in San Gabriel and he has equity, you might be able to settle or collect on a judgment, especially if there’s any equity. If he rents or the address is fake, thing’s aren’t looking good.
I saw an add on Craig’s List for these people.
They are expanding from 30 seats to 80 seats in Hollywood. http://losangeles.craigslist.org/sfv/sls/689966189.html
The building ahd no signs, and looked like a strange operation so I never went in.
Thank you VERY much for posting the link to the ad, I just posted an update.
I really wish I had the time to contact the California AG and document how they shut these scammers down.
I work there. Started 2 weeks ago.
And?
There doesn’t seem to be anything fishy going on. After reading your post I did a check on Mark through an attorney friend and there was one small claims judgement against him and nothing else. If everything you say is true wouldn’t there be more than that? Wouldn’t he have been closed down by now? There is a lot of people who work there including 7 or 8 customer support reps.I have spoken to the 2 most senior support reps and they have good things to say about Mark. One last thing that came to mind was that if he was really taking peoples money and they still had their debt after the program, wouldn’t the place be (at the very least)getting flooded with complaint calls? I have been watching closely and so far I really don’t see any reason to quit, but let me be clear, I would quit in a heart beat if this is a scam. Sorry, I know that’s not what you wanted to hear but if you have any proof or if I am convinced otherwise I will be the first person to help you bring him down.
Can you provide me with a list of attorneys in the FDRS “attorney network?”
Did you attend Mark’s birthday party last Saturday?
Mark Cella
2588 Nottingham Av.
Hollywood, CA
Will a slue of California Labor Code, UWC, and EDD violations help you bring Him down?
That depends on the violations and how credible the evidence is.
“Blue Delux” is apparently NOT a sales person, but working for FDRS to make them look more credible. Of course s/he knows that the San Gabriel address I posted is NOT Mark Cella’s address.
“Tommy boy” posted the current address for Mark Cella. I have not yet 100% verified whether he owns the Nottingham property, where his birthday party was last week.
I’ve received a lot of info recently, but am still in the process of verifying and it will take time to update at http://creditfactors.com/resistance/viewforum.php?f=9. I’d MAKE time if I got some donations.
And it would be very cool if one of the readers with real estate data access could check on Mark Cella and see whether he owns Nottingham and how much equity he has.
If he owns and there’s equity, it is much more likely that lawyers will sue FDRS. They don’t work unless there’s an excellent chance they’ll get paid.
come on Christine! That is so not cool, just because i’m trying to take a fair assessment you slam my credibility? Want to speak? Meet? Since my last post a lot has happened at FDRS.
BTW, its a rental. 8k a month; or so we are told. place was empty Sat night. Party was pretty sh*ty too. Side note, Shirley Temple’s old house, very nice property.
Just started reading all of this and am very captivated! I just was terminated from FDRS today without getting paid for the training period as promised. Last week a former employee stormed the property tying to get at Mark and/or Dan and/or Joel.
These guys are really not as bright as you make them out to be…they told us we had to bring a tape recorder to work every day to record meetings so we could replay on our commute (I did as I was told). On Thursday Mark held a meeting were he, in so many words, yelled at the top of his lungs that if you don’t get the signed contract and voided checks faxed back immediately or if you give the clients the opportunity to read it, you will be FIRED, TERMINATED (I just listened to it again, very entertaining). I hate scammers but if you must do it at least be good at it.
HaHaHa....I think RJ’s got it spot on!
Mark, we all know you’re reading this. Why not respond? You realize all you have to do is name a few people that did the program and are now debt free and happy. there must be hundreds of people who would love to silence your critics....right?
RJ,
Do you have contact information?
Christine,
I would like to start out by thanking you for the service and forum you have provided the victims of this apparent scam, your righteousness is beyond measure. I understand it’s hard to continue without some compensation but unfortunately these victims went to FDRS because of their financial woes and could be worse off because of it. So for you to donate your time like you have is an act of kindness rarely seen in this day in age.
Several weeks ago I was also asked by a helpless victim to look into issues regarding his EMPLOYMENT at FDRS. He is concerned about his rights under the DLSE, taxes, the reporting of taxes and most importantly, his liability in possibly committing fraud by enrolling victims into the apparent scam. This EMPLOYEE, and I assume all EMPLOYEES at FDRS, are force to sign an erroneous “Resellers Agreement” which on first read appears to be a bogus attempt at capitulation and redirecting liability. Of course they haven’t accomplished anything as their liability veil has been pierced from every angle.
There seems to be much activity on your site and I would like to use it to possibly locate current and former employees of FDRS who may have concerns and are afraid to come forward. Maybe this will aid in the crusade to put an end to what appears to be an unconscionable disregard for anyone who comes in this Mark Cella’s path.
Thanks again!
[email deleted since we have the Department of Justice address]
“Q for U” didn’t see Michael Hahn’s comment as I hadn’t approved it yet, but I’m hoping that his offer is now moot.
Also, I’m VERY reluctant to let anyone I don’t personally know collect info for these types of issues because there is the obvious risk of him/her working for FDRS. No offense intended, but I’ve been running forums for over 10 years and seen some ugly stuff.
I searched for “Mike.Hahn@doj.ca.gov” and “Mike Hahn California Department of Justice” and didn’t find anything.
However, it is safe to contact him because it is a .gov address.
Obviously, FDRS is monitoring my sites and if they haven’t been contacted yet by the DOJ, they’re scrambling now.
The million dollar question is whether there are any assets defrauded consumers and employees can recover.
With Mark Cella renting, that leaves according to info I’ve received Joel Edwards-Sales Manager, Dan Lyle-GM, and Matthew Zandil-Compliance.
Notably, I’ve also heard that FDRS claimed during training that they are a “sovereign entity” and not required to pay any kind of taxes.
If that’s true, I sure hope that if nothing else, the IRS and the FTB will pursue them.
I’ll greatly appreciate it if Mike Hahn contacts me through http://creditsuit.org/credit.php/blog/contact/ and let’s me know what is going on and what I can post for consumers and employees to do.
I’m as broke as any of the defrauded consumers and since there are NO ads on my sites, I get nothing out of this but unpaid WORK (I even paid to get the dba filings) and I’d like to MINIMIZE the time I spend on this while MAXIMIZING the results.
According to a comment, someone is suing and they decided to name the EMPLOYEE Veronica who sold the program.
The lawyer apparently thinks there’s nothing to get from Mark Cella and that the employees ARE liable.
New employees have been able to figure out that it’s a scam after only 2 weeks and after a few months everybody must have known.
For the “clients” it wasn’t quite as easy, they were told that they had to go through the full 18 MONTHS program. And of course they WANTED to BELIEVE.
So I’m hoping that it won’t be much longer until FDRS is SHUT DOWN and hopefully the key people will face criminal prosecution.
We’ll see what happens.
The following message to <Mike.Hahn@doj.ca.gov> was undeliverable.
The reason for the problem:
5.1.0 - Unknown address error 550-’Mailbox unavailable or access denied - <mike.hahn@doj.ca.gov>’
---------------------------------------
I’m sure you all know what that means.
And that’s why I do NOT allow anyone to start collecting info as “Q for U” offered to do.
It’s also why I MODERATE comments.
I have extensive junk fax litigation experience and most of the companies/people I sued for advertising scams and false mortgage rates/terms eventually went bankrupt.
A few are STILL defrauding home buyers and that the credit bureaus continue to give them consumer credit reports DESPITE notice and litigation is mind boggling.
The junk faxers committed perjury, harassed me, threatened me, posted false complaints about my services on the web and OF COURSE submitted posts here and at the then active Fight Back forum.
It’s difficult to determine who’s for real and who isn’t, all I can do is take the info provided and VERIFY.
As I previously posted, due to the lack of donations, my time and resources are limited. But I hope to get around to posting an new blog entry with a comprehensive update next week.
And if YOU are a (former) employee and serious about getting FDRS shut down, please DO fax or email scans of your contract and any recordings.
My fax is 571-222-1000.
The attorney who has named the sales person in his complaint may be on to something. I know in warfare it’s usually best to go after the head and the body then dies. However in this case he could be thinking; pick off the foot solders and the brain can’t survive. Might be the way for all these victims to recover their losses; start suing the sales reps for fraud in small claims court. They could probably put together a boiler plate complaint that will work for each case. From my understanding of FDRS that’s all they did with their credit elimination con. Might be time to fight fire with fire!
But it could just be they have found Veronica has real assets and just want to go after that.
I don’t know what the Department of Justice is doing but I have a contact there if you need it.
From to my extensive litigation experience against scammers I know that it’s best to name EVERYBODY and get a judgment against ALL parties jointly. That way you can collect from all until the judgment is satisfied.
The problem with CALIFORNIA small claims is that you can’t conduct discovery and the defendant can appeal in REAL court any judgment obtained, and the plaintiff then has to learn about the law and procedures.
And of course the entire process DELAYS the shutdown of FDRS.
HOWEVER, in other states the rules differ and I have personally collected almost $3,000 from an out-of-state small claims judgment in California when the sheriff took the money out of the defendant’s bank account.
So it all depends on the individual situation.
And yes, I do need a DOJ contact, who do you have?
His name is Kevin Lesh and he is an attorney in the San Francisco office. But before I give you his number and email, I would like to put a call into him on Monday to let him know I have put you in contact.
I hope you understand.
Who ever is looking for my contact info, I’m sorry but I’m done with this. And for all those who have gripes with FDRS, I was only in training and never closed a deal so I’m not accountable legally or emotionally for the detriment of anyone’s wellbeing.
If FDRS is truly monitoring this site then I would like to say this and since they like to quote great Americans I will start off with a quote from the patriot Thomas Paine-
“The most formidable weapon against errors of any kind is reason”
So Mark Cella, where is the reason? Why did you stiff me, you don’t even know me; I’m not part of the banking machine or the Free Masonic Trilogy. I’m just an old surfer from Orange County looking to pay some bills. And I’m not even talking about the additional four week draw that was promised. I may not have been right for the role but I worked hard and was on time everyday so why not pay me as promised? You claim you’re a millionaire- so why swindle me out of a couple of bucks…where is the reason?
If the Managing Director of FDRS is unable to demonstrate civility at this fundamental level (payment for services rendered) then how can anyone possibly have faith in your company and what you claim you will do? Reason says you can’t and you won’t which makes you just another huckster.
This is for “Blue Delux”, don’t you think it is fishy that those reps you spoke to haven’t been there any longer than 18 months? Maybe the reason is that this company is not 5 years old like they say and that they don’t have any satisfied customers who have gone the whole 18 months of the program. Maybe that’s why the push for so many new reps, the 18 month deadline before the sh*t hits the fan is looming. How long has the oldest rep been there? I’ve only heard its around a little over a year. The “Queen” hasn’t really been there that long. I think Joel Edwards has only been there for 12-14 months. I got your fish.
It appears Christine got a big donation from FDRS. Notice the change from FDRS to FRDS and the removed post.
But I don’t think this will get posted.
Please note the change from FRDS to FDRS. Thanks for letting me know, I fixed it. Very interesting how NOBODY had noticed the typo in the title.
And I suppose that means that the people who posted here did NOT search for “FDRS”, but for Mark Cella.
Everybody also please note that I have an entire CATEGORY for FDRS related news, FDRS - Federal Debt Relief SCAM at http://creditsuit.org/credit.php/blog/C158/
Regarding a removed post, I haven’t removed any posts.
So, who are you, “sellout?”
And of course, please submit any information that you claim I removed.
Re. liability of employees:
People with a conscience who quit after a few weeks have NOTHING to worry about.
Even if they were there a few months, I think they’ll be ok if they quit and submit their complaint to the Cal. attorney general’s office.
But nobody can claim to be so stupid and not notice that FDRS is a 200% scam after working at FDRS for a while.
The proof is of course the posts here and the people who contacted me directly and filed their complaints with the So. Cal. BBB.
FDRS doesn’t have THOUSANDS of employees. When you have such a small company and so many prospective or short term employees who figure out that FDRS is a fraud, it’s clearly a very OBVIOUS fraud.
And people like Veronica and all the management will likely be held personally liable, prosecuted and get jail time.
This is not just a slight misrepresentation of a product or service, but the entire operation is set up to defraud people with financial problems.
As you can see in my other FDRS posts, I’ve done my due diligence.
I emailed my request for information, but I received NOTHING. There’s no attorney network and not a single case filed by FDRS on behalf of their clients.
I talked with Dan Lyle on the phone and he threatened to sue me for defamation if I didn’t delete. Instead of deleting, I started the new FDRS topic Eliminating FDRS - the debt elimination SCAM at http://creditfactors.com/resistance/viewtopic.php?f=9&t=42
And for the record, I’m renewing my offer to FDRS to waive service if they sue me and I’ll accept the complaint and summons by fax to 571-222-1000.
“Sue me, Mark Cella, Dan Lyle and the rest of you CRIMINALS!”
I’d LOVE to be able to bring that scum down myself, to be able to conduct discovery and expose their FRAUD on the public record. But since I didn’t work for FDRS and I wasn’t a client, I have no legal claims.
The ONLY reason FDRS is getting away with the FRAUD is because their clients are totally broke and they are sued and harassed by creditors. They have no money to pay for an attorney.
Attorneys don’t take cases against companies and individuals with no assets on contingency.
And the victims don’t want to go public because they are ashamed that they can’t pay their bills, very much like rape victims rarely go public.
FDRS is the PERFECT fraud.
The sales reps (or “Reseller” as FDRS likes to call them) are the fall guys. All liability is transferred to them, just read the power of attorney page that you fax to the client.
Also, go to craigslist Los Angeles and go to jobs then search FDRS. Can you imagine how many unsuspecting sheep they are baiting into committing their crimes? SCARY!
Still not changed from FRDS to FDRS
Can any current or former sales representative of FDRS confirm RJ’s claim of reps being instructed to rush customers into signing contracts?
Also, Item 14 of your “Reseller Agreement” states:
INDEPENDENT COUNSEL: The parties hereto further represent that they have had the opportunity to obtain independent legal counsel before entering this agreement.
Was this the case or did you have to sign right then? Where you encouraged to take home or discuss with an attorney?
You don’t have to give your name but please help us, it may help you in the long run.
Help WHO?
Sellout wrote:
“Still not changed from FRDS to FDRS”
Why would I change the URL? So that the links don’t work anymore?
I can confirm RJs claim. I was at the same meeting.
I heard it clear as day. Mark said clients was to stupid to understand the agrement. Yell it like a crazy man.
Christine, do you know who “Private” is?
No idea.
All I know is that “someone” impersonated a California Department of Justice employee and provided a false email address and that nobody is willing to actually DO something about FDRS.
Can I speak to you via the telephone?
Why?
Why not?
Christine,
Ive been reading your post for the past 48 hours. Im down for the fight. I am an ex employee, who wised up in only 4 days of work. It doesnt take much to see what BS the whole operation is. If you can give me a DOJ,IRS, or AG contact, lets get these guys.
I have all the paperwork you could ever need, as I swiped it from work, (knowing full well that my time was limited).
I am most interested in where Mark hides his money. Does he really believe the whole banking fraud hype, and is keeping it in gold somewhere? Or is he the perfect scammer, using the central bank to wire money to foreign countries. How very ironic
I think the best way to start is by making public everything FDRS already knows (contracts/training materials, etc.) and trying to summarize the major issues on one page for the AG’s office.
Here’s a link for the people who did NOT get paid:
http://www.dir.ca.gov/dlse/dlseWagesAndHours.html
Be careful about publicizing what you find out about finances and your strategy and who you communicate with. There are a few things I don’t want to publicize.
I recently posted an idea on verifying people at http://creditfactors.com/resistance/viewtopic.php?f=5&t=25#p63
Of course ultimately a state attorney should conduct interviews with various ex employees and clients and they SHOULD go in and freeze all accounts and serve the cease and desist order, shut the business down and confiscate all records, computers, etc.
Obviously, it would be more effective if they didn’t know what’s up. But since everybody wants to be anonymous, I have to limit myself to public discussions.
It’s also been my experience with scammers that they piss off a lot of people and sooner or later somebody like an ex s/o or even family member finds my posts and provides info about where any hidden cash or gold is —IF it exists.
The government can trace all transfers and I’ve seen them freeze accounts in foreign countries. It’s amazing what they can do when they WANT to.
The difficult part is getting them to act. The FTC also has jurisdiction, but I sure hope that it’s easier to get the Cal. AG to move than the FTC.
SOMETIMES these agencies to work together, I don’t know whether FDRS is a big enough fish. I have no idea what their monthly net is and how many people are being defrauded. But obviously FDRS should be shut down ASAP as they DO force people with perfect credit into bankruptcy. There is NO way to undo those damages once people stopped paying their credit cards.
And to “truth seeker”, I don’t have time to waste talking on the phone. At least here MANY people can read. I do ALL my work online and in writing, it’s just too important. One exception is in court or during depositions.
As you guys know, talk is cheap.
So it better be under oath and transcribed by a court reporter.
You mention several times about assets. Here are some numbers. At the closing of the month for May 2008, the tally board had about 100 deals that were “blue”, or received paperwork. If you go by what they say is their average deal, $40,000, they will take in approximately 1.2 million for the month and payout roughly 10% to the reps. Even if their average deal is far less, the company is taking in a lot of money, even if you take into account their operating expenses.
If anyone is out there with a FDRS check, you can copy it and get the account number for their bank in Nevada. Oh, by the way, who is “sellout” selling out, himself, FDRS, or defrauded customers, I’m not sure
Budliteman, If you are an insider can you get the first and last names of any reps that have worked at FDRS since 2007? Even if they started in Dec.
Found this on another site:
Aaron Fisher. You need to file a compliant with the California State Attorney General. If enough people who get scammed by this company report to the it will grease the wheels of justice to shut the scampers down. Here is the contact info.
Attorney General - [deleted]
Looks like this thread reached its useful life.
Please don’t post crap from other sites, a little RESPECT please!
If you’re so incredible dumb you can find the California AG web site with the CURRENT info, you’re mentally challenged.
And I don’t believe for a second that anyone would be so stupid. “helper”, please do NOT post at any of my sites again.
I’m a bit tired of this entire topic now and the fake people postings here - you know who you are.
Too busy for BS. Take it to one of the millions of complaint and whiners’ sites.
